GAME. SEVEN. And the Greater Scheme of Things.

In professional sports, there is nothing like a Game Seven.

The effort you put in from the start of the offseason training camp, to the grind of the preseason and the 82-game regular season, to the fight to beat attrition that is the postseason, all cascading into this one spectacle.

At least 48 minutes to determine your fate, and for some, their legacy that upon which, would be bloviated upon by the talking heads and the commentweeters in the immediate future, and by history as time passes by.

One game where one miss or one turnover could possibly turn the tide. One game whose luck, if you believe in that, could smile towards you with a bounce, a tip, or even a roll. Numbers never lie, but Coach Spo said so himself:

You can't win this series or the last game with a statistic.  You have to compete and win those battles on the court

This Game 7 was preceded by an all-time classic Game 6, possibly considered as ABC's most watched NBA game since the Disney-owned company reacquired said rights. In the basketball-crazy Motherland, ABS-CBN proclaimed it as the most-watched NBA game ever shown on its channel.

Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals registered the highest ever rating of an NBA game on ABS-CBN

How grand was it? Well, here is the micro-movie:



It has been a blessing to have watched these two teams launch haymaker after haymaker, alternating wins and losses against each other.

From Tony's 23.9 seconds' worth of a working miracle, to LeBron's emphatic rejection. From dialing threes at the AT&T, to the revitalized Big 3. From Manu's rejuvenation to Jesus' redemption.

Does it matter who wins it, really? The better team will come out of this one, for sure.

What matters for me is that this game turns out to be a barnburner, a classic. Something we can narrate to the future generation/s. Something that you can be proud of to have been a witness to. Something that non-fans would go say, "This is awesome."

One that would inspire that little kid somewhere to go out, hone his craft, and play ball. To grow the game and make it even better.

That at the end of it all, the true winner of this one-game spectacle will be the game of basketball. So sit back, and enjoy the show.

Ray Allen on the OT-forcing triple

Jesus Shuttlesworth!

Q.  Ray, can you take us through that last play, you setting up behind the three‑point line, kind of what you saw after Chris got the rebound?

A:  Well, LeBron took the shot, and I knew we had time, I had to go‑‑ I went into the paint to try to get the ball and make something happen.  At that point there's no guarantee who is going to get the ball or what may happen.  And when I seen CB get the ball, I just backpedaled right to the three‑point line, and I was hoping I was where I needed to be.  But I wasn't quite sure.  But just from years of shooting, I got to my spot.

Q.  Ray, how much did your rhythm at the end of Game 5 sort of help you tonight?  And also sort of talk about, this series has been so much about Danny Green's three‑point shooting, and you come back a game after he breaks your record, and hits a pretty big one.

A:  Well, it's been a very unusual series.  There hasn't really been great momentum from one game to the next for any team.  For us shooting‑wise, between myself and Mike, we've been in great rhythm shooting the ball, getting into our positions, trying to take the load off of LeBron and D‑Wade.

But now we're in a situation where we have to make any play, whatever play necessary offensively and defensively is where we have to hang our hats right now.  Because they're an executing team, the best executing team that we've seen thus far.  So defensively is where we have to hang our hats right now to win Game 7.

Q.  Ray, Chris Bosh said you saved the season.  What's the best words for you to describe the magnitude of your shot?

A:  It's going to be a shot that I'm going to remember for a long time.  There's a lot of shots that I've made in my career, but this will go high up in the ranks because of the situation.

Just the way that whole last minute and a half unfolded, it wasn't looking good for us.  But we've been resilient all year.  We've been down in situations, we've come back and won games.  We never give up.  Just being able to be in that situation where the ball bounced in our direction.  You know, we've been a part of many plays where the ball has a funky bounce to it.  And I've known my whole career sometimes you just get lucky.  When you win championships, it involves a little luck.  That right there was luck shining on our side.

Q.  Two questions:  When you caught that pass from Chris, LeBron was at the top of the key screaming.  Did you ever consider kicking it out?

A:  No.

Q.  I had to ask.  Even for someone whose work ethic is as historic as yours is, to backtrack, get your hands set, get your feet set, take that pass and then have the momentum going forward to shoot, how tough is that even for you to do all that in the span of maybe about half a second?

A:  It's tough, but believe it or not, I work on it quite often.  I try to put my body in precarious situations coming from different parts of the floor, different angles to try to get my momentum going moving forward.
I honestly can say I gave myself a great opportunity, a great chance to make that shot.  And it wasn't unfamiliar to me positionally.  When it went in, I was ecstatic.  But at the same time I was expecting to make it.

Q.  Ray, we've talked a lot over the years about your process in that kind of a situation.  You don't aim on that kind of shot.  Can you take us through your sort of mental checklist as that play is unfolding on a broken play like that.

A:  Whether CB [Chris Bosh] threw me the ball or not, I had to get myself in a position where I was ready.  Once the ball came off the rim, I just knew get to the three‑point line.  We need a three.  Two points isn't going to cut it.  So my mental checklist is really to have my legs ready and underneath me, so when the ball comes, if it comes, I was ready to go in the air.

So that's pretty much‑‑ once I get my legs there, I let the ball go.  I'm going to give myself the best chance to make it.

Q.  Ray, you mentioned this is a shot you will remember for a long time.  Would you be all right if this was the defining shot of your career?

A:  I don't think that's up to me to decide.  Anybody who will talk about me when I'm away from this game is going to talk about my impact on the game.  They'll talk about plays that I've made, shots I've made, games I've won.  That will be up to the particular individual.

But I think it depends who you talk to.

The Southeast Division NBA Preview

Atlanta Hawks - 40-26 last season. 5th seed in the playoffs. Lost to the Boston Celtics in the 1st Round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Ideal Rotation: Jeff Teague, Devin Harris, Anthony Morrow, Josh Smith, Al Horford / Lou Williams, DeShawn Stevenson, Kyle Korver, Anthony Tolliver, Zaza Pachulia

Storyline/s: The IsoJoe is no more, as the Nets sent assets down the dirrrty south to acquire the All-Star. They also rid themselves of the disappointment of Marvin Williams. Now, Larry Drew can reshape the team to what he'd like to envision. With the East being reshaped, they have a chance.

X-Factor/s: Lou Williams came home after leading the Sixers in scoring as its top offensive option of the bench.

Prognosis: Exiting the 1st round of the playoffs.

Charlotte Bobcats - 7-59 last season. Missed the playoffs.

Ideal Rotation: Kemba Walker, Gerald Henderson, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Bismack Biyombo, Byron Mullens / Ramon Sessions, Ben Gordon, Reggie Williams, Tyrus Thomas, Brendan Haywood

Storyline/s: They were clearly the worst team in the NBA last year. How bad they were last season can be described as at an all-time worst. The new coach in Mike Dunlap will look to Kidd-Gilchrist to set the tone for everyone to follow.

X-Factor/s: Will Tyrus Thomas ever gain the maturity needed to be a positive influence for the team. Is Kemba ready to handle the playmaking chores full time?

Prognosis: Missing the playoffs.

Miami Heat - 46-20 record last season. Division Champions. Conference Champions. NBA Champions

Ideal Rotation: Mario Chalmers, Dwyane Wade, Shane Battier, Lebron James, Chris Bosh / Norris Cole, Ray Allen, Mike Miller, Rashard Lewis, Udonis Haslem, Joel Anthony

Storyline/s: They won the title. Can they do it again? How will Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis fit the Spoelstra scheme? Can Lebron handle his new-found role as a post presence. Is Chris Bosh fit to play slotman minutes? Wade's dynamic with James was made possible given his health status. With both healthy, it will be interesting what the structure turns out to become.

X-Factor/s: How Ray Allen adapts to his new role would probably determine how far the Heat go.

Prognosis: Division Champions. Eastern Conference Champions. NBA Champions.

Orlando Magic - 37-29 last season. 6th seed in the playoffs. Lost to the Indiana Pacers in the 1st Round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs.

Ideal Rotation: Jameer Nelson, Arron Afflalo, Hedo Turkoglu, Glen Davis, Gustavo Ayon / E'Twaun Moore, JJ Redick, Al Harrington, Nikola Vucevic

Storyline/s: Life after Dwight Howard begins for the Magic. Just as it was in life after Shaq. Former Orlando playmaker Jacque Vaughn returns to the Magic, this time as its head coach. Schooled under the Popovich line, the Magic are hoping they find a coaching gem the way Doc Rivers became for them years ago.

X-Factor/s: Will Big Baby step up to the plate and be the go-to-guy?

Prognosis: Missing the playoffs.

Washington Wizards - 20-46 last season. Missed the playoffs.

Ideal Rotation: John Wall, Martell Webster, Trevor Ariza, Nene, Emeka Okafor / AJ Price, Bradley Beal, Chris Singleton, Jan Vesely, Kevin Seraphin, Jordan Crawford

Storyline/s: Randy Wittman replaced Flip Saunders, with the Wiz setting up a good finishing kick to the season. That removed Randy's interim tag. They traded away malcontents and acquired character guys to surround Wall with, in spite of the Kentucky alum's injury that is to linger awhile.

X-Factor/s: Since John Wall will be unavailable to start the season, can either Jannero Pargo or AJ Price mitigate the expected drop-off? Can Emeka Okafor provide the maturity, stability and leadership that this team clearly lacked last season?

Prognosis: Missing the playoffs.

TWTWTNBA: Deconstructing The NBA Finals - Focusing on the Immediate Future

The Finals beckons. Now that we have gone back to the way past, time to focus on the here and now.


Finals schedule: Time is in ET. Miami has homecourt advantage. The real winner though, is American Airlines, which has the naming rights to both venues (Miami is AA Arena, whilst Dallas is AA Center). Just so you know, Southwest Airlines is the official airline of the NBA.

Game 1: May 31. 9pm
Game 2: June 2. 9pm
Game 3: June 5. 8pm
Game 4: June 7. 9pm
*Game 5: June 9. 9pm
*Game 6: June 12. 8pm
*Game 7: June 14. 9pm

* - if necessary

Regular Season Matchup: Dallas won both games, both were relatively early in the season (November and December). It is important to note that Caron Butler was healthy and available when they faced off. In fact, he played a vital role on both games. At the same time, Peja Stojakovic (still with New Orleans / Toronto) and Corey Brewer (still with Minnesota) were not yet with the team. Rick Carlisle has indicated that he all but ruled out him playing in the playoffs, let alone this series, but Tuff Juice has been working his darndest to make himself a option before the series is over. On the other hand, Udonis Haslem was still recovering from injury and Mike Miller was just freshly

The first meeting was in the early days of the struggles of the Heat, and the second meeting was the only loss the Heat went through on their sizzling run (which included the great fabled Lebron homecoming) that immediately followed said struggle.

What should Miami do:

1. Wade redux. Dwyane Wade pretty much had a pedestrian series against the Bulls, but he among the three had the best numbers against the Mavs in the regular season. Of course, you know what he did in 2006.

2. 2/3 clicking. There is the ridiculous stat where if the three combine for 70+ points, they are virtually unbeaten. That's the challenge of Erik Spoelstra in figuring out ways that he can maximize the offensive outputs of Wade, James and Bosh.

3. Udonis Haslem. He pretty much will be tasked to tackle Dirk Nowitzki. He, along with Joel Anthony, were vital in the low post defense, rebounding and hustle stats.

4. Outside sniping. 31 attempts from long distance in their 2nd regular season meeting. Hopefully, Mike Miller's distraction has been addressed and thus be able to focus on the task at hand. Mike Bibby has been an absolute misery, whose playoff PER has been a point of mockery on the interwebs.

 What should Dallas do:

1. Three-point barrage: They killed the Lakers with it, they have not yet suffered from it. Oh, and they shot better from there against the Heat. And they have the shooters to do it. (Kidd, Terry, Stevenson, Stojakovic).

2. Offensive oomph off the bench: JJ Barea has been a postseason revelation. The Puerto Rican from Northeastern is just running rings around his defenders. The Heat might have to do to him in a lesser extent what they did to Derrick Rose. Of course, The Jet is the linchpin off the bench for the Mavs. The former Sixth Man of the Year is familiar with crossing swords with Wade.

3. Defending. Mavs held the Heat to under 42% shooting in their regular season meetings and outrebounded them (by a small margin). Can they keep that up? They have the capability to check things with Chandler, Marion, Stevenson, Brewer.

4. Dirk. This is about what he is about to do. The stigma that Dallas was screwed out of 2006. The misery of being embarrassed by Golden State. His legacy might be giving the Metroplex their first championship in the new millennium (Stars were the last team to win, via the NHL in 1999).

Prediction: Mavs in 6. This ain't your time yet, Lebron. You'll get your chance, but not now. Not this year. And with the way the Indians are playing, the hex of Dan Gilbert might just come true.

TWTWTNBA: Deconstructing The NBA Finals - Revisiting the Past

Congratulations to the Dallas Mavericks and the Miami Heat. They made it to the NBA Finals. Just like what they did 5 years ago. It would be remiss to look back then as a means of revisiting the situation that is about to unfold.




The 2006 Miami roster: Derek Anderson, Shandon Anderson, Earl Barron, Michael Doleac, Udonis Haslem, Jason Kapono, Alonzo Mourning, Shaquille O'Neal, Gary Payton, James Posey, Wayne Simien, Dwyane Wade, Antoine Walker,  Jason Williams, Dorell Wright

Note: Matt Walsh played with the team during the season but was waived during the season. Gerald Fitch with also with the team but was traded to acquire Derek Anderson.

Five years later: Udonis Haslem and Dwayne Wade are the only remnants.

The 2006 Dallas roster: Darrell Armstrong, Erick Dampier, Marquis Daniels, DeSagana Diop, Adrian Griffin, Devin Harris, Josh Howard, Didier Mbenga, Rawle Marshall, Dirk Nowitzki, Pavel Podklozin, Josh Powell, Jerry Stackhouse, Jason Terry, Keith Van Horn


Note:  Doug Christie played with the team at the start of the season but was waived during the season.

Five years later: Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry are the only remnants. Interesting to note though, that Erick Dampier is on the Miami roster this time around. Jerry Stackhouse likewise was also on the Heat roster, but he was waived early in the season.

We all knew what went on in the Finals. Dallas goes up 2-0 and was leading late in Game 3 before Miami pulls off a comeback to win it, and then winning out, albeit with some controversy due to officiating. Most point out the free throws disparity, as Dwyane Wade had 46 free throw attempts in the last two games of that series, with people quipping that blowing air towards him would cause the ref to call a foul.

Wade was named as the NBA Finals MVP, averaging 34.7 points. 7.8 rebounds 3.8 assists 2.7 steals and 1 block in that 6-game series. It's amazing how he just took over that series.

South Beach Pests

Just as you thought South Beach cannot be as annoying as it is with all the fuss and hullabaloo around it, it just keeps on going...




Game 3 at the American Airlines Arena in Miami not only featured jousting between Joakim Noah and a fan, which will cost the young Bulls center some dough, but also much fuss with TNT's Charles Barkley.

Chuck, of course, has been critical of the Miami Heat all season. He also picked the Bulls to advance. Obviously, some Heat fans felt that this is an affront to them, and let him know about that. Chuck, knowing him, gave them an appropriate response.

As such, the TNT set is to be moved inside the AAA.

*c/o Opposing Views, USA Today, and Chicago Breaking Sports.

The 2011 Eastern Conference Finals on TNT.

I am Taj. Hear me roar.

Well, Game 1 has already passed us by, and what a game it was. For Chicago fans, that is. Bulls come out like gang busters in the 2nd half and paved the way for the manhandling that went on from there. For Miami fans, they want to shake this one off as fast as they could until tip-off for Game 2 begins.

After the jump, here is the much belated preview of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals.


Schedule of Games (times are in local time at Chicago):

Game 1: at Bulls, 7 p.m., Sunday, TNT 103-82 win for Chicago

Game 2: at Bulls, 7:30 p.m., May 18

Game 3: at Miami, 7:30 p.m., May 22

Game 4: at Miami, 7:30 p.m., May 24

*Game 5: at Bulls, 7:30 p.m., May 26 

*Game 6: at Miami, 7:30 p.m., May 28

*Game 7: at Bulls, 7:30 p.m., May 30

*If necessary

It's kind of odd seeing a huge time gap from Game 1 to 3, but then again, that Oprah has much pull.

Regular Season Matchup:  Bulls won all three games by relatively small margins. It is important to note, though that Lebron James missed the first meeting. And the Chris Bosh 1/18 shooting game was their second meeting.

What should Miami do: Lebron and Dwyane have finally gotten over the Boston hump. Now they should assert themselves and go for the big kahuna. Ditto for Chris Bosh, who needs to keep the likes of Noah and Boozer off the boards. There is a need for the bit players to make more contributions, from James Jones making three's to effective quarterbacking from Mario Chalmers.

What should Chicago do: Play together and defend. Thibodeau was the man who devised the Boston defense that steered them to two Finals appearances and one NBA title. They have guys whom they can put on Lebron and Wade (Bogans, Deng, Brewer). The bigs controlled the boards 19-6 on the offensive end in Game 1. Derrick Rose should be able to control pace and knife his way through things.

X-Factor/s: For Chicago, it's Taj. You saw for yourselves what he did. Can he follow that up with more of it? As for the Heat, it's Bosh. Because the Heat cannot afford to have him being dominated on by Noah and / or Boozer.

The pick: Bulls in 6. 20 years after Michael Jordan makes his NBA Finals debut and staking his claim on behalf of his generation, Derrick Rose makes his debut to represent the 00s.

Eastern Conference Playoff Picture

C/o ESPN

From the original 8, there are now just four teams left in the East. Congratulations are in order for Chicago, Miami, Boston and Atlanta. Happy trails to Orlando, New York,  Philadelphia and Indiana. Let's see how the teams and match-ups fare for this round:




1 - Chicago vs 5 - Atlanta

Regular Season  Matchup: Chicago won with 2-1 edge. All 3 games were in a span of 3 weeks in the month of March, so they already had Kirk Hinrich in tow. Josh Smith did not play in the first meeting, which was the only one that the Hawks won and was the only close game. The other two meetings were major Chi-town blowouts. Speaking of which, the second game (and first blowout) did not feature Carlos Boozer.

Keys for the Bulls: Derrick Rose went nova on the Hawks, scoring 34 and 30 in their final two meetings. Considering Kirk Hinrich is nursing a strained hamstring, the mismatch got even bigger. In both of their blowouts, they had a huge edge in rebounds, taking advantage of their athletic bigs. There is a slight concern with the ankle, though. Luol Deng has been playing well, but he is mainly benefiting from the presence of Rose and what he does as well as the attention to Boozer.

Keys for the Hawks: They pretty much frustrated Orlando in such a way that it absolutely was putrid to watch their games. Yes, it was really that difficult to watch how ugly this series got offensively. They might have to do the same thing to the probable MVP Derrick Rose. Larry Drew must realize that they don't have much depth, so they'll have to keep things close and not allow Chicago to pull away. As such, he must also figure out a way to minimize the Iso-J**** (Joe, Josh, Jamal) situations a.k.a. Clogged Toilet offense that stops ball flow. Atlanta needs to be efficient with their offense knowing their limitations.

X-Factor/s: Jamal Crawford will be absorbing most of Kirk's minutes, while Jeff Teague will be a nominal starter just like Jason Collins. Hawks cannot afford to have bad nights, so Crawford needs to get buckets. Bulls need better numbers from Carlos Boozer, who struggled mightily in the last playoff series.

Prediction: Bulls in 5.

2 - Miami vs 3 - Boston

Regular Season Matchup: Boston won with a 3-1 edge, winning the first three. It is important to note that all three wins by Boston came before the Kendrick Perkins trade. The first two games also featured Udonis Haslem for Miami, who then got hurt. Also playing in two games were the O'Neals. Shaq played in the first two, Jermaine played in the first and the last. Delonte West only played in their final meeting. The three Boston wins were close to an extent, but the Miami win was a huge blowout.

Keys for the Heat: The supporting cast. Sure, they probably have the best collection of young studs, but they can only get you so far. Will Mike Bibby, Mike Miller and James Jones be enabled to shoot? Can their collection of bigs get the job done down low, or in Z's case, make the 15 foot jumper?

Keys for the Celtics: The supporting cast. All three wins in their regular season faceoff also had a role player making a major contribution, from Glen Davis to Nate Robinson to even Von Wafer. They'll need that because it will entail a massive effort from Paul Pierce to have to deal with limiting Lebron James. Oh, and Rondo needs to get off his funk. Sure, he eviscerated the Knicks at Madison Square Garden the past game or two, but his form has been off in general compared to how he got serious MVP votes

X-Factor/s: Shaq did not play in the first round against the Knicks. He did not play in Game 1, but he did travel to Miami. As they traded away Kendrick Perkins, it is a must that Shaq plays. On the other hand, Joel Anthony has been the solid defensive presence to complement Chris Bosh, something sorely missing due to Udonis Haslem's injury. Can he keep that up? We'll see.

Prediction: Celtics in 6.

Lebron being Efficient and Consistent

Okay, I know some people grow sick and tired of talking about the Heat, because they really do make an interesting storyline for the whole year. However, after what most saw during the game (it was shown on BTV), and from reading the tweet streams and tweet conversations after the game(s), color the world impressed with the Stud-worthy statline.



What the King pulled off against the Magic was definitely an impressive feat in itself. He started off like a house on fire, making his first 11 attempts.



Then, with Wade getting beaten up and Bosh not really being a factor, Lebron just went on and on.



I still think Derrick Rose is the front runner for the MVP, but Lebron is really making a creditable chase for it even with he and Dwayne Wade putting up pretty much the same numbers as what they had last year.

(c/o CBS Sports)